Help
by FaithStarLight
Summary: Robotnik is missing, but is he really gone? Mobius is under threat of power, and the courage of the heroes is crumbling before their eyes. Will Sonic and the team ever regain their once peaceful world?
1. Holding Out For A Hero

**I was busy writing chapter 4 of 'Wonderer', but I began losing insperation and eventually stopped because I didn't want it to become dull. So, I was looking aroundmy files to see what story I could continue with and that's when I found one of my old Sonic stories called 'Help In Life'. I read through it, and I was actually impressed with what I had written, so I thought I'd upload it for you Sonic fans :) **

**This chapter is short, I know, but it's kind of an opening thing, and I was sectioning out the story so it made sense to have this part seperated from the next chapter (which you will understand when you read it). **

**Also, I'm well aware that Tails is 8 years old in the Sonic games, but just for this I decided to make him 6 like Cream and Charmy (because that way he reminds me of the old school Tails back in Sonic 2) :)**

**Enjoy!**

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"Tails!? Tails, where are you!?"

It was a bitter, cold morning on South Island. The sky was clear of clouds, showing nothing but a pale blue atmosphere. The icy air made hair stand on end, and give the most aching pain in the head. The land's glorious nature was buried under a layer of crushed ice, killing the environment slowly inside. Winter had officially arrived.

An unusually coloured hedgehog trudged through the thick white powder, his body shivering under the extreme temperatures; teeth clenched tightly; and eyes narrow to shelter the blistering gust of wind that passed every so often. His intentions for fighting through the dangerous weather were to find someone. This particular someone was a young fox with large blue eyes and two obvious, yet abnormal, tails. The child had wondered off once again in search of his long lost parents, who had sadly been labelled "missing" in winter, years back when the fox was still very young. This must have been the fifth time this week, turning it into a tradition for the kid.

Little did the fox know that his best friend, adoptive older brother, and former guardian, Sonic, was determined to find him no matter the obstacle. Sonic received his name on a count of his ridiculously fast running speeds. His fur was a deep shade of blue, with long spikes on his head and back, and dazzling emerald green eyes. His hands were covered with white gloves, and on his feet he wore white socks and red shoes, which were fastened with a white strap and golden buckle.

"Tails! Tails, answer me!"

"S-Soni-ic!?"

Sonic stopped to a halt, turning on his heel and darting towards the echoed voice. To Sonic's alarm he found, sheltered under one of the dying oak trees, the little orange-furred fox, curled up on a bed of snow.

The hedgehog named the kid 'Tails' on account of his unnatural physical feature, which pleased the child gratefully as he hated his real name. This was the same time Sonic saved Tails from living in extremely poor conditions, and allowing the kid to tag along for a while, eventually leading him to adopt Tails as his younger brother.

Sonic knelt down quickly, scooping Tails into his arms and hugging him comfortingly, hoping to rid of the cold sensation creeping into the child's body.

"Tails, are you okay?"

"I-I'm cold, S-Sonic."

"Don't worry, Kid. You'll be home soon," Sonic assured him, holding Tails close to his chest and running through the frosty air.

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**The second chapter will be up a.s.a.p. :) Hope this sounded okay for the beginning :D Please comment Sonic fans!  
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	2. Living Conditions

**After an hour of editing and trying to understand what the hell was going on in the film 'Back To The Future II' I've managed to edit this chapter and upload it :D Fairly long too, and it's kind of giving you a brief about what's happened in the world. Yeah, I'm mixing the Sonic worlds up a lot. Things like Mobius, South Island and the name Robotnik are taken from the games, and then you've got your newer things like Big the cat and Team Chaotix (based from Sonic Heroes). I'm trying to involve all the Sonic characters, after all, Mobius is a big world ;P**

**Anyway, please enjoy!**

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"Is he okay!?" bellowed a rather loud child, continuously circling Sonic.

"He'll be fine, Charmy. Just give him some space will you?" Sonic scowled at the young bee. He carefully laid Tails in his bed, covering him with a rather thin blanket. _'We could probably do with more blankets. At this rate we're gonna freeze to death' _Sonic mused, sighing sadly.

"Is he cold!?"

"Charmy, can you just-!"

"What's your racket about, Charmy?" asked a gruff voice. Vector, the green and yellow scaled crocodile, leader of Team Chaotix (a group of detectives), stood in the door way of the bedroom. Charmy flew over to his boss excitedly, his wings buzzing frantically.

"Sonic found Tails!" he cheered. Sonic headed to the door, pushing both his friends out of the room, leaving Tails to sleep peacefully. The hedgehog gave Charmy another disapproving look – his voice was one of the most annoying things to ever sound through Sonic's ears. After a brief silence, Vector remembered what he had come to say.

"That's good news, Sonic. But we've got a problem." Sonic folded his arms coolly.

"What's up?"

"Charmy, get out of here, I've got to talk to Sonic," Vector ordered.

"Hey!" Charmy burst out. "Why can't I stay!? I'm part of the gang!" Before Vector could yell back with a more overpowering and frightening brawl, Sonic stepped in.

"Charmy, go see how Cream is doing, okay? She'll want to know about Tails."

"Sure thing, Sonic!" Charmy playfully saluted, cutting through the air and zooming away down the hand made staircase. Sonic and Vector waited intently, until the little bee's presence was surely gone. Vector cleared his throat.

"We got a message from Knuckles. Apparently he's seen some sort of badnik scanning the skies."

"Scanning the skies?"

"Yeah, there's not much to go on, apparently he hasn't seen it since. I've got the group looking into it, but I don't think there's anything to worry about. Robotnik hasn't made a peep in a while, so I'm guessing it's one of his useless, broken down badniks. Not dangerous at all!"

"Everything's dangerous when Robotnik's involved," Sonic murmured, stepping past Vector. The crocodile watched the young hedgehog drag his feet down the stair case, gazing sadly at the dirty flooring. He sighed. Sonic wasn't the same person he used to be.

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Down the stairs, Sonic entered what was named 'The Entertainment Room', though that was much of an understatement. The room was bleak, filled with a couple of olive-green, tattered couches and flattened cushions which gathered around a small TV with a pathetic signal.

The group were fairly well off with money, but those coins and notes had no purpose in South Island anymore. Many Mobiun's had fled after the disastrous attack of Robotnik's war machines a couple of months ago. Living on their island was truly a death wish, therefore the remaining citizens had constructed themselves an underground home, which was welcome to anyone in need of help. Once made, the underground home was filled with around twenty-three scared, hurt and homeless people. Unfortunately, after only a few weeks of the underground experience, the people had decided to; either stop this supposedly ridiculous behaviour and face the badniks; go out just to end their worthless lives; and even to try and move to a different island. No one prevailed. And now there was only eight survivors underground, out on their island was a whole other story.

Sonic glanced lazily around the unwelcoming room. Charmy, Cream and Cheese were talking happily amongst themselves whilst sitting on one of the broken couches, avoiding the sharp spring that pierced through the material. Vanilla, Cream's Mum, watched over them, smiling contently as she admired her daughter's beaming smile.

"Sonic," Vanilla began, walking towards the teenager's stubborn posture. "How are you?" she asked caringly.

"I'm fine," he answered shortly. "And you?"

"I'm good, thank you. And how is Tails?"

"He's fine too. He's gonna be okay," Sonic replied rapidly. A hurtful feeling crept around Sonic's mind, as he thought back to the past trauma. He knew deep down inside that his friends didn't trust him anymore, not like they used to when he was a true hero. He knew that everything and everyone was his responsibility, and whatever happened would be his fault, regardless of the situation. In the end, he didn't feel like a hero anymore, and for that reason he didn't want to hold this impeccable dependability. It hurt too much when he failed.

"That's great to hear. Please don't blame yourself for his actions, Sonic. He's just a child, and I'm sure he-"

"Where's Espio?" Sonic interrupted, not wanting to hear the rest of Vanilla's brotherly-love speech.

"Oh," Vanilla paused startlingly. "I think he said he was out to investigate the area," she mused. "I do hope he returns soon, I don't want him to catch a cold."

Sonic sighed irritatingly, folding his arms in thought. Although Espio had the great gift of turning invisible, the hedgehog was certain he'd be caught by something some day.

"Sonic?" a small voice arose from the silence. Cream, the youngest member of the group stood on the couch seat, peering over the back rest to see her hero. "Can we go and see Tails, please?" she asked, remembering her manners. Sonic shook his head.

"I don't want to wake him. You know he doesn't sleep well around winter."

"Oh, okay. I understand," the small rabbit smiled.

"Cream, dear, what have I told you about standing on the couch?" Vanilla questioned softly. Cream looked down at her summer-coloured shoes and squeaked.

"Whoops! Sorry, Mummy," she apologised, sitting back down correctly, hanging her feet off the chair as far as they would go.

'_What difference would it make? It's already scruffy' _Sonic thought moodily.

Suddenly, there was a rather loud bang from above the entire dwelling. Without thinking twice, Sonic darted out of the room and headed up another staircase, leading him towards the entrance and exit of their home, keeping his cool to whatever he may find and maybe even having to fight. The red trainers skidded to a stop. Sonic looked perplexed as a rather chunky pair of legs and a bushy purple-striped tail stuck through the doorway, also known as the big hole in the ground covered by rocks and shrubs.

"Big, if I've told you once I've told you again, you don't have to keep dropping in to give us food. We're fine on our own!" Sonic reached out and grabbed a tight hold of his friend's leather belt and tugged hard. Big's weighted body shifted around the hole and without warning plunged on top of sonic. The round cat sat for a few seconds, completely dazed on where his small, blue friend could have went.

"Sonic?"

"You're-sitting-on-my-stomach!" the hedgehog breathed. Big rolled off urgently and apologised. His yellow-gloved hand grabbed a hold of Sonic's wrist and shook him off from the filthy floor, before standing him up on his own two feet.

"Thanks …" Sonic said half-heartedly.

"No problem!" Big accepted joyfully. "Sonic, I brought you some more fish!" The striped cat held out a sharp fishing hook holding as least a dozen small fish by their tails. He licked his lips greedily. Sonic knew Big must have been dying to swallow those fish whole, whether he was hungry or not.

"Big, you didn't have to …" the teenage hedgehog said half grateful, taking the hook from the towering feline. "You should be keeping this for yourself and find somewhere safe to stay. Or, like I've mentioned before, you can stay here with us."

"Thank you for the offer, Sonic," Big said in his usual dumb-like voice, "but I'll be okay where I am. And I like helping you all. You've helped me a lot, Sonic!"

"Yeah, I know."

After a short goodbye, Big left through the hole (which took longer to happen than coming through), and Sonic headed into the kitchen, dumping the fish in a bucket. He sure couldn't wait to tell everyone that they'd be having fish for the ninth time this week.

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**Sounding any good? If so, please review! I want to hear your thoughts! :)  
**


	3. Guardian

**Here's chapter 3! :) Time for some Knuckles and Rouge ;)**

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Knuckles, the red echidna, lived on Angel Island as a guardian for the Master Emerald – a powerful gem created by Gods thousands of years ago, to negate the Chaos Emeralds being used for evil. Since accepting his duty as a guard, this limited Knuckles' time to see his friends back on Mobius, as the mystical stone was too precious to leave behind. Therefore, he serves the group as a sort of watcher, staying alert for any signs to Robotnik's whereabouts and his cursed machines, using the Master Emerald's power.

Another friend of the group, and also a big help to Knuckles, was Rouge – the jewel thieving bat. She had always wanted to wrap her sticky fingers around the precious Emerald, but once battling Knuckles for it, she soon realised how valuable it was to him, gratefully accepting that he would risk his life for its protection. In the end, she couldn't help but join forces and keep the people of Mobius from their villain's wicked plans.

A pair of wide, purple wings cut through the air, swooping down towards the historic Angel Island, or the Floating Island as the powers of the Master Emerald kept it afloat. Rouge had been out to find any evidence of Robotnik's next attack, but no one had any answers. In fact, most places she had stopped at had been deserted. The islands of Mobius had been dramatically altered, and Rouge, along with most folk, had doubts that things would never be the same again.

The bat's white, knee-length boots pressed into the crispy snow and she walked blissfully, admiring the view around her. Despite being coated in powdered ice, Angel Island maintained its beautiful, historic landmarks. The echidna tribe's ruins continued to stand proudly, reminding any visitor, or trespasser for that matter, that they once ruled this wondrous, magical island. Surrounding Rouge were various towering palm trees, with huge shielding leaves, and fuzzy shrubs, sprouting their way from the soil. The female bat felt a sudden sadness seep through her. It really was a sorrow that Knuckles was the last of his kind, and Rouge wished she could do to more to help.

A few minutes passed and the young bat moved her curvaceous body towards the magnificent, vital Emerald which sat at the top of a stone temple. There was no sign of Knuckles. The thief desperately wanted to stand in admiration to the jewel, maybe touching it just once? It was very tempting. Maybe she could take one step up towards it … just one …

"Rouge!"

The bat hunched her shoulders, turning around to the alerted bark from afar. Standing at another opening in the trees, was the tough fighting guardian himself. A pleasant smile grew on Rouge's attractive face as she flew over to embrace her companion in a brief, but warming, hug.

In Knuckles' violet eyes, his relationship with Rouge was never more than just friends, and the odd time rivals. Rouge, on the other hand, had quite an obvious crush on the echidna, which Knuckles seemed to look past as if it were invisible. She enjoyed flirting with him, and annoying him, but she always spoke with a kind tone of voice, assuring her gullible friend that she was only having a bit of fun. The bat had wanted a stronger relationship with Knuckles for a long time, even before aiding him in protecting the Master Emerald, but there had always been something stopping her. Something inside telling her that there is someone else to care for just as much. And his name is Shadow.

"Hey, Knuckles, how are you?"

"Great," the echidna said, hinting an obvious tone of sarcasm.

"What's wrong _this _time?"

"I'm sick of that damn river freezing over! Every time I break into it to get a drink it freezes over in just a few minutes!" Knuckles growled moodily. "I hate winter."

"You also hate summer," Rouge laughed, remembering Knuckles' constant moaning about the sun's brightness.

"Yeah, well, anyway," Knuckles focused back on what he really should have been talking about. "Did you find out anything?"

"Not really. We have far more places to go though, Knuckles. Everyone on South Island has deserted their zones. At least that's what I saw. They could be in hiding."

"Unless Robotnik has taken them," Knuckles snarled, folding his arms across his chest.

"Let's not think about that. It's the last thing we want to happen."

"I know, it's just …" Knuckles sighed, "never mind. I suppose your plan is to head to another island?"

"Yeah, but I'm sure the group will want to know about our plan. I was going to go to West Side Island, and that's a lot bigger than their current home land."

"Well, be careful. While you were gone I caught a glimpse of some sort of machine scanning the skies. I haven't seen it since, but I imagine it's one of Robotnik's badniks looking for Sonic and the others." Knuckles gazed out in front. "I'm not sure if they received it though. The weather hasn't looked very pleasant down there."

"Looks like that's a mission for us then," Rouge grinned, stretching her wings out proudly.

"I can't leave here. It's too big a risk after the sighting. Feel free to though. I'll keep an eye on the Emerald," Knuckles said miserably.

"Knuckles …" Rouge wondered off, unsure on what to say.

"I'll be fine. I'll warn you if there's anything out there."

"Thanks." Rouge took off in a dash and swept through the cold air. "Be careful …" she whispered.

The echidna rested his back against the frozen, stone temple and watched Rouge escape into the clouds while cradling his self-healing arm – a reminder of the past. He closed his eyes … and sighed.

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**Sound good? As you can probably tell I'm not sure who to make Rouge be with. But that's for later XD Might need your help you see :-P Please review!**


	4. The Fear Of Risks

**Thanks for being patient, guys. I knew I had another chapter in here somewhere. I wrote it last year before watching the last few episodes of Fullmetal Alchemist :-P Anyways, enjoy!**

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**Night had descended across the sky. Bright white stars twinkled around the crescent-shaped moon which beamed its light above the island.

"I wish I could see the stars again," Cream admitted as her Mum tucked her in the hand-made bed.

"One day you will, dear," Vanilla said truthfully, though feeling rather cheerless inside as living underground stopped her daughter from enjoying the world as it should be. At this rate of the chaos on Mobius, it could be years until Cream will run free on the green grass of Green Hill, having her small Chao friend, Cheese, fly on behind.

"I feel like I haven't seen the stars in so long," the six year old yawned, rolling on to her side to feel more comfort.

"Don't fret, Cream," her Mother whispered, stroking her long, soft ears soothingly. "You never know, if you think hard enough, you may see them in your dreams." Cream smiled.

"They're both strong," Espio told his boss while watching Vanilla's eyes look lovingly at her child's innocence in slumber. "It can't be easy for the kids here. Not being able to go outside."

"Well _obviously_," Vector droned. "But it's been like this for months, Espio. They'll get used to it."

"They'll get used to it, but they won't enjoy it."

"I enjoy it!" a voice chirped from behind the older males.

"Charmy, what do you think you're doing!?" Vector spat, shaking a fist at the little bee. Charmy flew around in a circle, giggling to himself.

"I'm too tired to sleep!"

"Well, count sheep! You're making too much racket!" the crocodile yelled. Espio rubbed his eyes, slightly exasperated. Luckily for Cream, she never awoke, as the two boys argued for a good while.

Along the end of the bedroom situated tunnel, Sonic walked alone. His steps very soft and in no hurry whatsoever. It was time for his tradition. A tradition he would continue to do for as long as it needed to be done. His forehead began to heat, managing to produce a drop of sweat, concurrently with the nauseating shiver crawling up his spine.

The hedgehog froze. His hand lay on a wooden door knob, as he scanned his green, guilt filled eyes across the engraved words: DO NOT ENTER WITHOUT PERMISSION. Taking in a vast amount of breath, the fifteen year old made his way into the private room, closing the door firmly behind him.

A disturbing song of monotone notes echoed through the hedgehog's ears as he entered a scarcely lit room, very empty yet very small. Sonic kicked the ground childishly, folding his arms in an act of defence. He didn't _really _have to move towards the corner of the room did he? Of course he did! He bit his lip fumingly. Those frightening and distressing thoughts flashed across his eyes as he moved towards the only furniture in the room – a bed.

Smoothing out part of the bed, he sat very cautiously on the bed, sinking his head into his hands, scared and sorry about the accident he had caused. Lying under the layer upon layer of blankets, sleeping soundly was Amy Rose.

"… We had fish …" the teenager said miserably, not having a clue on what to say. What do you say to someone you failed to protect? Can they even hear you? Sometimes Sonic believed it, as he watched the bruised face of the pink hedgehog stir slightly.

Sonic rubbed his hands nervously, his palms beginning to roast under his white gloves. There was no use in staying here. Sonic was far too frustrated and miserable to stay in the dreary room, no matter how much he wanted to. Looking at Amy lying still was enough to make Sonic's stomach twirl.

Regrettably, the hedgehog rose from the bed and rushed out the room, apologising as he slammed the door.

"Hey there, Sonic."

Sonic's head spun around quickly, eyes wide open. Standing by his side was Rouge the bat.

"What are you doing here?" Sonic asked alarmingly, moving away from the door to avoid questions.

"Nice to see you too," Rouge frowned, unimpressed as the old friend lacked a warming welcome. Sonic didn't take any notice though, so the bat spoke up.

"Knuckles wants to know if you received the message through the bad weather. Something about a robot in the skies?"

"Yeah, I heard. It's not very likely that we'll be heading out of here any time soon," the hedgehog explained, thinking back to Tails' unexpected, but not first, escape. "I want to keep everyone underground until I know that the badniks have moved on." Rouge nodded.

"That makes sense," she said slowly. "But what about the citizens of Mobius? They need your help too."

"I know," Sonic whispered. He thought for a moment about the celebrations and gracious comments from survivors of Robotnik's terrible schemes. The planet rejoiced over Sonic's selfless acts, and thanked their lucky stars that they knew their hero was there to save them.

At least until Chemical Plant Zone detonated.

"So?" Rouge said impatiently, hoping the hedgehog would have more to say than the various small, sad sentences that literally fell from his lips. She hoped that saving more people would help him get back on his feet, and bring more hope to the survivors. Sonic shrugged.

"If I leave here, then the group will be in danger-"

"Oh come on, Sonic," Rouge whined, her tone appearing annoyed. "Think of the difference you could make if you did leave here. No one has attacked you for a good while, so there's no point in making excuses." Sonic opened his mouth, but the female bat wasn't done. "You have Vector and Espio's strength, as well as Tails' intelligence. Vanilla will no doubt take care of Cream and Charmy, so why can't you leave?"

"Because-" his voice halted. Rage filled his body, but he refused to let an argument endure. Rouge was only expressing her hurt opinion, and she was undoubtedly making sense, but it was guilt heaving Sonic back. Guilt for Amy, Knuckles, all of his friends … everyone.

Rouge placed her arms across her chest plate shaped as a heart and tilted her head.

"I'm sure you won't mind if I crash for the night?" she grinned, lowering her eyelids sensually. Sonic stared; his mind blocked in the previous subject.

Rouge turned quickly, heading to the spare room the group had created especially for their frequent guest which was identified by the drawing Cream had kindly drawn for the bat. The title read 'Rouge and Knuckles in love', followed by a series of crosses, formally known as kisses. Rouge always smiled when she gazed dreamily at the disfigured illustration of Knuckles' oversized head.

Sonic gazed down at the floor, deep in thought about Rouge's sudden strict words. She wasn't wrong, and he was in no way going to start accusing her of it. Inside his mind, he attacked himself with depressive thoughts; always blaming and always accusing. What he forgot to realise was that the sooner something was dealt with, the sooner it could change things; maybe for the good of humanity.

Although, last time he had formed a party to counter Robotnik's slaughtering technical equipment he had set up on the outskirts of Mystic Cave Zone, which out of the blue exposed a frightful attack of lethal bombs. No one survived inside the dark town.

But where they truly ready? Or did a more structured plan need to take place? The hedgehog needed a seat.

Moving hurriedly to the confinements of his own room, Sonic sat uncomfortably on the edge of the woven mattress and sat his muzzle into his palms, staring into the darkness.

'_Think about it rationally' _he ordered himself, frowning as his mind played tricks on him. There were no glowing lights dancing around his walls. _'What happened last time was enough to stop any of the group from trying again.' _That seemed a solid enough reason not to choose to find the villain. No, he wasn't going to find the insane man that ruined this peaceful world, Sonic was going to free the Mobiuns in hiding, if there was any left, which he hoped would be.

The hedgehog rubbed his eyes wearily and mused once again.

On the last occasions, nearly all of his friends suffered terrible injuries, especially Knuckles; whose arm had practically lost its ability to move, and Amy; who, due to unexpected events, was caught in a collision of caging boulders. There was only a ten percent change she was going to make it out of there alive. They never did work out the fraction on her life to remain forever in a deep sleep.

And there was no new muscle on the scene to help out. If he had a chance of fighting Robotnik-

'_No! I'm not going to fight him, I can't risk it' _he scolded himself after thinking of another dark thought.

If he had a chance of _saving _people, he corrected, then the only ones capable of helping would be Team Chaotix, Rouge, Tails and possibly Knuckles, and even then it left Vanilla and Cream helplessly on their own, taking care of a motionless Amy.

Sonic grinded his teeth. It was a risk, and a huge one at that. For all he could be doing, he could kill all of his friends, and Robotnik would finally be able to dominate the world and use the defenceless Mobiuns as his slaves to become an outrageous and power-mad ruler.

Before he realised, the teen hedgehog had fallen into the safe sanctuary of sleep, where only his nightmares could harm him.

It was only then that a gentle voice spoke softly words of support, that a minute curl edged its way on Sonic's mouth.

"_You are the hero of Mobius. You will always continue to live up to your title. And if you save the helpless citizens from a life of torture and grief, you can take them to safety. Then, when the time is right, you can rid of Robotnik and be free forever. Will you save us?"_

Eyes shot open a vibrant shade of green, and stared shockingly into space.

"… Sonic?" Amy whispered.


End file.
